


Branching Dialogue

by StrawberryPoison



Series: Komahina continuity [2]
Category: Dangan Ronpa - All Media Types, Super Dangan Ronpa 2
Genre: Anthropology, Dialogue Heavy, Discussions of Suicide, Gyakuten Saiban | Ace Attorney Spoilers, M/M, No Sex, Twilight Syndrome spoilers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-17
Updated: 2021-01-17
Packaged: 2021-03-15 11:21:02
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,879
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28812585
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/StrawberryPoison/pseuds/StrawberryPoison
Summary: After playing Twilight Syndrome Murder Mystery, Hinata visits the only person he feels he can discuss it withA tribute to visual novels
Relationships: Hinata Hajime & Komaeda Nagito, Hinata Hajime/Komaeda Nagito
Series: Komahina continuity [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2177097
Comments: 17
Kudos: 36





	Branching Dialogue

**Author's Note:**

> I probably didn't need to mark this as M, but SDR2 is an M-rated game, and I'm getting pretty fed up of a lot of the children in this fandom. I also think glorification of suicide/ dying for a cause is probably more dangerous for young minds than sexual content or whatever, and this fic contains Komaeda Nagito, so. Stay safe.
> 
> This is kind of a continuation of my... other fic, but with none of the good stuff because my sex drive has gone again. The only relevant parts are that they both discussed playing the game before, and some sexual content occurred. The terminology has changed, though, because I am inconsistent.
> 
> Pretty much just dialogue.

A Game Over filled the screen and Hinata’s stomach dropped. Something about misunderstanding flickered on the arcade machine, this was clearly a bad end, and the potential consequences made his heart race in panic.

And…nothing happened.

A trapdoor didn’t open beneath his feet, spears didn’t fly at him, he wasn’t even drenched in water. The bad end seemed to be just that, there was no punishment for his failure. But the game had also made no damn sense, and didn’t seem like a motive to him. There was no sign of his lost memories, although some of the characters seemed familiar; certain other classmates of his may have found it slightly more enlightening.

But still, what the hell? The gameplay had been pretty linear, what was he even supposed to do to get another ending? He kicked at the arcade machine, frustrated. Maybe this was the motive after all, making him so annoyed he’d want to kill someone.

He certainly felt like throttling Komaeda for his incredibly helpful advice. Just don’t lose. Simple, really. He was not in the mood to be humiliated over a damn video game, especially not one that seemed to consist entirely of just walking around. He remembered a conversation he’d had with Nanami, she had said he’d be good at puzzle games. Not that this was a puzzle game, but it was definitely puzzling. She’d probably be disappointed in him for failing. And for playing the game in the first place, of course.

Guiltily, he looked over his shoulder. No sign of anyone else. It was worth another try.

The only noticeable action he was able to take was finding a broom and returning it to its classroom. This released a handful of coins, but it didn’t change the outcome. An image of a dead girl, and then a game over.

No dialogue options, hardly anywhere to explore, there didn’t seem to be anything he could do. Infuriating. He should really ask the others for their insight.

\---

His determination to broach the subject at breakfast disappeared almost immediately. Everyone else seemed convinced not to play the game, and they were treating their inconclusive conversation in the park as if they’d all made some sort of pact of avoidance. Hinata didn't feel like outing himself as some kind of traitor, especially considering what had happened to the last one.

Of course, going to visit that very same traitor in order to discuss his own treachery… Probably the most suspicious thing he could do. 

If only to have an alibi, he picked up a cup of instant noodles from Rocketpunch. Having to go into the kitchen first and heat up water helped to steady his nerves, and by the time three minutes had passed he was predominantly just feeling annoyed at his classmates for making him feel like he’d done something wrong.

Warily, he opened the door to the dining room.

“I brought food. Can’t have you dying, I guess.”

The prisoner perked up at the sight of him.

“Hinata-kun! You came back!”

He wanted answers, and this was the best available option. Still, the awkwardness of their last meeting lingered. Hinata decided to act like nothing had happened between them, and attempted a nonchalant answer.

“I had to. Saionji thinks sweets are a balanced breakfast, these people can’t even look after themselves.”

Komaeda giggled, there was a rasp to his voice, probably from thirst. Even if feeding him was an excuse, he really did need to eat. And an excuse to put off asking him for help was appreciated.

Hinata helped Komaeda onto his knees, easily this time, refusing to acknowledge the heat of his body or to linger in the warmth. Self-control. The power of shame. The fact he wasn’t in the mood. Whatever it was, he managed to successfully arrange the other boy, feed him, even wipe his mouth without getting distracted. He had a more pressing concern than how Komaeda sucked up the noodles from his chopsticks.

“So, I…” he trailed off, already regretting opening his mouth.

Komaeda looked at him expectantly.

“Ah, I’d better lie you back down.”

He gently lowered the other boy to the floor, trying not to breathe his scent in too deeply. Just as he was sitting down, Komaeda piped up.

“Did you play the game, Hinata-kun?”

He fiddled with his shoe. It was unavoidable.

“Okay, fine, yeah, I did. And there wasn’t even any point! I feel like I’ve let everyone down, and I didn’t even learn anything useful. Of course, you’d know all about betraying people, you psycho.” He glared at Komaeda, lashing out at him wasn’t productive, but it helped to put things in perspective. Komaeda was the real villain here, Hinata was just trying to do what was best for the group. He wouldn’t hurt anyone. “It wasn’t even a real game, you just wander from place to place and read text.”

“It sounds like Hinata-kun doesn’t like visual novels.”

“If I wanted to read a book, I’d read a book!” he responded, far too indignantly. 

“I’d say my preference is adventure games with a lot of plot, rather than pure visual novels, but I like reading, and if the story is interesting, I don’t mind the format at all!“

“The story wasn’t any good, either,” Hinata grumbled.

“I assume the story is the point, then. What exactly happened?”

“I’m not sure I should be telling _you_.”

“Then why did you come here, Hinata-kun?” he tilted his head, quizzically.

“I brought you food. And I wanted to let you know you were wrong, I didn’t get any of my memories back.”

“That’s a shame. Were you thorough in exploring every route?”

For all his hero worship, he seemed to look down on Hinata far too easily, which didn’t make him any happier about his failure.

“Fine. I got a bad ending. But there weren’t even any choices! There were some empty rooms you could go in, but the only thing you could do was pick up a broom!”

Komaeda looked disheartened, but he thankfully didn’t challenge Hinata’s status as a symbol of hope.

“I’d like to help, Hinata-kun, but you’ll have to give me more details than that, since I can’t play it myself.” The patience in his voice was pretty patronising, though. Still, what choice did Hinata have?

“Okay, so, you play as this girl. There’s a bunch of other girls, too, and none of them even have proper names, just letters of the alphabet. I was Girl A-”

“How was playing as a girl, do you feel more in touch with your feminine side, Hinata-kun?”

“No! Shut up! Do you want to hear, or not?”

“…”

“I didn’t mean… actually, yeah, good. Anyway. Girl A joins her friends, although actually at this point you can wander around, but all I managed to do is move a broom from one classroom to another, which got me these stupid coins. They aren’t even real money, not that money would be any use here.”

“You can use them in the gachapon machine!”

He gasped, and probably would’ve covered his mouth if his hands weren’t cuffed together behind his back.

“Yeah, right, whatever. The friends talk about a newspaper article about a murder, but then they mention that they actually discovered the body first and didn’t say anything, and one of the girls even took pictures. And Girl C, I think? I should’ve taken notes… she seems to think they’re cursed, and Girl E rips the photos up and says to throw any other copies into the incinerator.”

Komaeda made a muffled squeaking noise that suggested he had something to say. Despite specifically coming to talk to Komaeda about the game, Hinata decided to enjoy the silence for a bit longer.

“I think it was Girl D that took the photos, the stupid naming doesn’t really help. The character models all just looked like generic schoolgirls, as well. I feel like I’ve forgotten what normal people even look like after spending a few days with the people here.”

The silence was a bit unnerving, and as confident as Hinata was that he was at least mildly amusing, and it was just that Komaeda lacked a normal sense of humour, he decided not to drag this out any longer.

“Okay, Komaeda, you can talk, there’s obviously something you’re desperate to say.”

“What did the character with the photos look like? And did they show the incinerator?”

“That’s it? I already said they didn’t look like anything!”

“2D pixel graphics, or 3D? Not that there wouldn’t be pixels either way, and it is on a screen so-“

“3D simple models, looked pretty cheap.”

“Hmm… Yuuri from _Saikai_ looks a lot like Koizumi-san, that would’ve been a good thing to pick up on, they both have cameras. Of course, Koizumi is the SHSL photographer, just using a camera is hardly the same thing, still… if the character design doesn’t look like her, that probably means it isn’t. Did any of them have a backpack? Or a torch? Or a recording device?”

“I don’t think so. I was thinking about the memory thing, though. I didn’t recognise the characters as people I know,” not that he could remember much from his life before being trapped here, but that wasn’t something he was ready to bring up to _Komaeda_ , “but the character design was so simplistic I guess they could’ve been anyone. Girl A does talk about not wanting her friends to hate her, though, and the more I think about it… Girl A might be Tsumiki. She was generic looking, but still, long dark hair.”

“Hmm. It might be worth talking to Tsumiki about it, then, maybe these are her memories.”

Hinata winced, talking to Tsumiki was never easy, and seeing her in the pharmacy the other day hadn’t helped his impression of her. From making her cry on their first meeting to her recent threat of shots, all the evidence suggested she was not a good person to talk to about this.

“I need to make sense of it before I go to any of the others about it. There’s no point being labelled a traitor for no reason.”

Komaeda looked doubtful, but his enthusiasm over solving a mystery took precedence over any concerns he may have had about Hinata’s attitude.

“Any other distinguishing features? How about their gait?”

“None of them looked like anything, and they all had the same basic run animation, as far as I noticed. One of them was shorter than the others, but that’s it. The only short girl I can think of is Saionji, and this girl was far too polite for it to be her, especially if Girl A really is Tsumiki.”

“Did any of them have 90s hairstyles?”

“90s…?”

“Hairstyles, Hinata-kun.”

“90s hairstyles?”

“Like flicky hair. Or curtains. Or a greasy looking fringe.”

“Flicky hair and a greasy fringe, sounds like you.”

“I’m hardly in a position to wash my hair, Hinata-kun. I can assure you it’d be clean if I had the choice.”

“I think they all just had normal hair. Straight and dark and either down or tied up. I wasn’t paying much attention to how their hair looked.”

“It sounds like the character models weren’t from any of the original games, although I can’t be sure based on your description. The 3D models suggest it isn’t based on the first game, but the torn photos suggest it is, Monokuma’s complete lack of consistency or respect makes it trickier to work out. Hmmmmm.”

He had a look of intense concentration on his face, although Hinata didn’t think deciding which game in a series Monokuma’s closest resembled was at all important. Hinata was about to interrupt his thinking to move the discussion along, but Komaeda did it for him.

“What happened in the rest of the game, Hinata-kun?”

“There’s only two other scenes, it’s pretty short. The next bit is introduced as 4th Day. I assume the fourth day since the murder? It actually starts off as 2nd Day, so I think that would make sense. There are only two parts, so…”

Komaeda again looked thoughtful, but he didn’t say anything.

“You don’t even control the characters from here, and it shows a different girl, the one who ripped up the photos."

“Girl E?”

“Yeah, her. She’s on her own talking to herself about how she’s late back from archery club, and that she needs to forget the murder. There’s then red text saying ‘I won’t let you forget’ over and over, and she runs away yelling ‘Forgive me’, and then there’s just a screen saying ‘I’ll never forgive you’. Written in blood, of course.”

“Ah, of course,” Komaeda nodded solemnly.

“Then you’re Girl A again, and you find your friends freaking out about a curse again. They tell you to go into a classroom, there’s then a picture of a dead girl on screen, and then game over. The picture wasn’t like the rest of the game, it looked like a low-res photo, and there’s a metal bat next to her that looks like it was used to bash her head in.”

“The photo at the end sounds just like the original game! But a curse and a metal bat, come on, that’s so obviously taken from a completely different game! Five characters, a linear plot leading to a bad ending, maybe it’s not that you needed to do anything differently, you just need to play the Answer arc next.”

“I don’t know what you’re going on about, but that’s the only game Monokuma gave us.”

“Perhaps the Question arc is enough. After all, it’s probably enough to solve the murder.”

“It is?”

“The implication is that the disembodied voice belongs to the previous murder victim, wouldn’t you say, Hinata-kun?”

Hinata had not come to that conclusion.

“Oh, uh, yeah. Because… it’s a game about ghosts.”

“So, what does that suggest about who the murderer is?”

“Uh… a ghost? But can a ghost use a baseball bat?”

“Well, a poltergeist could. Or a human could be possessed by a spirit and it could happen that way. Or the spirit could possess the victim and cause them to kill themselves, that would make suicide by baseball bat more plausible than if it happened in a regular mystery… Oh, but that’s not the point! I was talking about the other murder!”

“The other-? Oh, right. But we don’t even know who the victim was! The game doesn’t tell you anything about that murder. And I think it was supposed to be a pervert who broke into the school, anyway, so I don’t think that’s supposed to be the murder mystery in the title.”

“You never said anything about a pervert, Hinata-kun. But still, I don’t think that’s it. ‘I will never forgive you’?”

“Oh. _Ohh_. Girl E was the killer??” Hinata definitely wasn’t expecting that. She was a _schoolgirl,_ for goodness’ sake.

“It’s the best explanation I can give from what you’ve told me. Wanting photos of the crime scene destroyed, not wanting anyone to know they discovered the body, trying not to think about the murder. Such a guilty conscience suggests guilt. Still, it’s inconclusive, and you did say it was a bad end, which generally means there’s a good end. And I’m not sure what would be the point of just getting us to essentially try and solve a mystery. Which is not to say that I don’t enjoy the genre, a visual novel with an ambiguous ending can be fun…”

“A game should be about gameplay! It’s in the name!”

“I thought you appreciated plot, Hinata-kun.”

Hinata choked at that, but Komaeda seemed oblivious to any inappropriate implications. His passionate defence of plot appeared to be genuine, and were it anyone else, Hinata would’ve backed down.

“Having some sort of story isn’t the same as removing all gameplay. The plot gives meaning to what you’re doing, but the actual game part is the fun bit. Reading isn’t a game!”

But there is gameplay in _Twilight Syndrome_! There’s investigating! Investigating is fun! _Ace Attorney_ is popular, isn’t it?”

“So fun that you decided to make me do it in real life. A murder investigation really _isn’t_ that fun.”

“Hmm. I think the set up was the problem. I wasn’t able to create an interesting enough mystery worthy of Hope’s Peak students, but also the victim was deeply unfortunate. The _Ace Attorney_ games largely have you investigating the murder of someone you have no prior attachment to, with some notable exceptions. Having a main character killed off for the very first case was probably not ideal, it’s really a shame it wasn’t me in Togami-kun’s place. Although it seems you didn’t need a warm-up, and you really did perform terrifically under such unfortunate circumstances!”

“What…what the hell, Komaeda?! This isn’t a video game! You’re talking about real people’s lives. Two people died. “

“Yes, only two, thanks to you! An outstanding demonstration of your brilliance, even without knowing your talent.”

Hinata glowered at Komaeda. He was probably fighting a losing battle trying to get the hope-obsessed boy to realise how fucked up his mindset was, which was infuriating enough, but he truly resented his lack of a known talent being brought up.

Komaeda piped up, he seemed desperate to fill the silence, perhaps out of fear of being left alone again.

“You know, there’s a new _Ace Attorney_ game coming out! Although, it may well be already out, if Monokuma was telling the truth. It stars Mitsurugi Reiji, the most exciting character in the main games. Spin-offs can be unreliable, but I’ll happily risk playing a bad game in order to see more of my favourite character!”

“Your favourite character?” Hinata asked, monotonously, unable to stick with the silent treatment. Komaeda’s response was over-eager, the opportunity to ramble about his interests was apparently much too appealing for him to show restraint.

“In the series, yes. He plays such an important role- we have an adversarial court system for a reason. Having both sides try their best helps the truth to be uncovered, but it can also be seen as a battle for the strongest hope! Mitsurugi is the perfect rival in court, in challenging Naruhodo, he allows him to truly shine.  
But he’s also a sad character. His father died right in front of him when he was only a child, and he felt responsible for the death for years, although it turns out not to be his fault- oh, sorry Hinata-kun, that’s a spoiler.  
He’s wealthy, he’s successful, but he seems lonely. He put all his energy into an ideal that turned out to be flawed, he thought all accused should receive punishment, by any means necessary. A large focus of the original trilogy is Mitsurugi’s journey to realise what it truly means to be a prosecutor- a glorious, fair fight between rivals. Without opposition, Naruhodo wouldn’t be able to reach the truth of a case, or to become a renowned defence lawyer. Naruhodo really does turn into something brilliant, he starts out all cute and nervous, but his confidence grows…”

“I-I know what you’re trying to say”

“Well, you do both have spiky hair.” Komaeda gave a teasing grin, and he felt himself blushing. He wasn’t going to let Komaeda charm him, damn it.

“This isn’t an _Ace Attorney_ game. There wasn’t even a real court of law. All you’re doing is helping Monokuma get what he wants. And you didn’t help any of us get stronger, we lost the only person who seemed to have his shit together! Why don’t you understand that?!”

“I do have more experience with NPCs than real people, I won’t deny it. People tend to distance themselves from me, and those that don’t…”

His grasp on reality seemed tenuous.

“Oh, haha, trying to get you to pity me, how selfish. I really am trash, unworthy of sympathy.”

Hinata really didn’t have the energy to deal with this.

“You know what. It’s too early in the morning for me to have this conversation with you. Do you have anything useful to say about the stupid motive game, or should I just assume it was all a waste of time? Because I have no idea what even makes it a motive. Ghosts?”

“I doubt the intention is to invoke fear of the supernatural as a motive. That would be difficult to pull off, and just hinting at it in a video game doesn’t seem sufficient,” he giggled, seemingly at nothing.

“But having played it, there wasn’t anything encouraging me to commit murder. The only one I want to kill is Monokuma for making such a bad game.”

Komaeda seemed to laugh genuinely at that. It was nice.

“But you didn’t actually complete it.”

“H-hey!” Hinata’s mood soured. “I told you, there were no options! There probably isn’t even a good end, Monokuma just wants to mess with us.”

“Maybe there was subliminal messaging? Hypnotism? Compelling you to kill through mind control?”

“Why would you encourage me to play it if you thought that?!”

“It was only a possibility, Hinata-kun. I don’t think killing someone because you’ve been hypnotised would be especially hopeful, but if you manage to escape, the end result could still be a shining hope! If you find yourself committing murder, feel free to tell me and I’ll do my best to help you get away with it! I’m pretty useless, but I have read a lot of mystery novels. The key is misdirection.”

“As if I’d trust you, you threw Hanumura under the bus as soon as you got bored.”

“Ah, that’s disappointing to hear. I really would like to help. Of course, the best way I can help is if you wanted to kill me-“

“I’m not going to kill anyone! Why are you so desperate to die?”

I’m not desperate to die. At least, I don’t think I am? If I just killed myself, what good would that do anyone? Doesn’t the fact I’m still alive show I’m not suicidal?”

“You want me to kill you, that sounds pretty suicidal to me.”

“Hmmm, perhaps you’re right. But I really don’t want a meaningless death, so if you do decide to kill me, let me know, so I can help you plan it. I’d like it if you were able to use me to escape”

“Being willing to die for someone would almost sound romantic, if it didn’t apply to everyone in our class.” Oh, God, he really just said that out loud.

“Hmm? That couldn’t be… jealousy?”

“W-what? No! Who would be jealous over something so messed up?”

“Isn’t dying for those you love a popular trope? Or for what you believe in? I think you’re overreacting.”

“This is real life, Komaeda!”

“I suspect you’re the one who’s currently more at risk of committing suicide, anyway.”

“M-me?”

“There’s a lot of suicide in the _Twilight Syndrome_ series, it’d be more thematic to brainwash you into committing suicide than into murdering someone.”

“I thought we established that Monokuma’s game isn’t a faithful sequel?” Hinata desperately tried to reassure himself. His mental state was fragile enough without a deliberate attempt to push him to kill himself.

“Well, he didn’t completely disregard the premise. And the absence of much to link it to the series could just suggest the tie-in is yet to come!”

“Don’t sound so excited!” hysteria crept into his voice.

“Hmm, I wonder. Suicides… There’s a girl dating a teacher who gets dumped, a boy who’s being bullied, a boy who is in love with his male best friend…” his eyes flickered up to Hinata’s, “unrequited love and taboo relationships are definitely a theme. But there is a girl who is caught up in a ritual and throws herself off a cliff to continue it. I… I like that chapter a lot. I think that’s probably the best representation of what will happen to you, moved as if by a supernatural force, there are even cliffs here for a proper replication.”

“Hey! Stop it! What do you mean ‘will happen to me’?! Why the hell…?”

“Ah, I’m sorry for getting ahead of myself. I just thought it would fit nicely.”

“Th-that’s-!”

“It’d actually be a good thing, at least if it happened exactly like in the game. Or, it’d be better than the alternative. Because it would mean ultimately, you’d have a choice, especially with the other Super High School Level students to help you!”

Hinata had visibly paled and was tugging at his trouser leg.

“I don’t know why you didn’t mention any of this before I played it.”

“Oh, well I can go into it now. It’s one of the highlights of the series!”

“Damn it, Komaeda! Just… fine. Tell me.”

“Well, I said it was a chapter, but it’s really two, and originally it was spread out over two games, but they came out in the same year and have since been packaged togeth-“

“Komaeda,” Hinata growled impatiently, trying not to sound panicked.

“So, Mika, who is one of the three main girls, finds a message on a desk in the library. It’s from a girl who just wants a friend to talk to, and they start a ‘desk correspondence’. Mika is originally just doing it as a joke, which the other girl doesn’t know, but she is won over, and honestly it’s a wonder they don’t run out of desk space, but… that’s not really the point, apologies Hinata-kun. Mika never sees the girl in the library, and some of her messages are strange, she seems completely unfamiliar with popular culture-“

“So, she’s a ghost, right? That’s where you’re going with this.”

“Hinata-kun is so clever~”

Hinata grunted, quietly satisfied.

“One day the mystery desk girl writes that she’s going to die, which scares Mika. She tries to end the correspondence, but she feels compelled to return to the desk. There’s a message saying to meet her up in the cliffs.”

He paused, probably for dramatic effect, but a thought occurred to him.

“Definitely be wary of any messages you receive asking you to meet up with someone.”

“Noted.” Hinata said, drily, although internally he was still on edge and desperate for all the advice he could get.

“Yukari and Chisato- the other two girls- go looking for Mika and they can’t find her in the library. They find an old copy of _The Wind Rises_ \- have you read it?”

“No.”

“Ah, I have, it’s only a novella so I’ve actually read it quite a few times, haha.”

“Is this going somewhere?”

“Oh, well the librarian sees them with it and says it belonged to a girl called Sakura who died 30 years ago. It turns out she’s the mystery desk writer, which is worrying, so they find the desk and see the last message about the meeting. They run to the meeting place, only to watch as Mika is spirited away.”

“Wait, there’s no way I’m going to be spirited away. That’s not something that really happens.”

“It wouldn’t be related to playing the motive game, either.”

“Okay, so why did you make me listen to all that?” Hinata asked, through gritted teeth.

“I didn’t make you do anything! I could never! But I wasn’t done, that‘s how _Tansakuhen_ ends, but it’s continued at the start of _Kyuumeihen_.”

“Was there any point to what you said already?”

“Well, context is important. And I think ‘beware of messages sent by ghosts’ is always good advice.”

Hinata scowled at Komaeda, but made no move to leave.

“I’ll try not to go on so much. But you do seem less upset.”

It was true, Komaeda’s rambling had at least temporarily distracted him from the fear of death, but it hadn’t reassured him, either.

“There’s a really interesting section where they just read library books that I won’t go into-“

“How the hell is this a game?!”

“You’ve made your feelings about visual novels known, we’ll just have to agree to disagree. Anyway, they learn about a nearby river where dolls were sent down, so they go to the river-“

“How is that linked to anything?”

“I was trying to be concise. The various books they read lead them to believe that travelling along the river is the best way to try and reach where Mika has gone. And it mostly works, they end up in the mountains and they can see Mika and Sakura, but they can’t reach them. Chisato describes it really poetically, the two worlds are like parallel lines, but at the right angle, they look like one line. Because in reality, nothing exists in only two dimensions. But still, the two lines never cross, so there’s no obvious way to get to Mika. Except, strong emotions act as a transversal-“

“Are the maths references really necessary?”

“Ah, a transversal is-“

“A line that passes through other lines. Get on with it.”

Komaeda seemed suitably impressed with Hinata’s geometry knowledge, which gave him an embarrassingly warm feeling inside.

“Sakura tries to get Mika to stay with her, to become the sacrifice for the next generation.”

“Wait, what? Next generation? Where did that come from?”

“I mentioned the dolls, right?”

“Mmm. Isn’t that just what happens at Hinamatsuri?”

“Not everywhere, but yes, the doll floating ceremony. The idea of the ritual is to take all of a person’s sin and suffering and put it into the doll, so the person will have good fortune.”

“Komaeda, I know what Girl’s day is. Save it for Nanami. She doesn’t, for some reason.”

“Huh? Nanami-san doesn’t know about Hinamatsuri? Is that even possible? Where is she from?”

Hinata turned pink at the challenge.

“I-I don’t know. I didn’t want to press her in case, um, in case it was because of a traumatic past, or something, y’know. I’m not sure if her mother is in her life, she kind of suggested she just lives with her dad, and it felt too soon to ask.”

“Even if her mum is dead, I don’t think that’s enough of an explanation. _I_ know about Hinamatsuri, after all.”

“Wait, what? You mean…?”

“Oh, I just meant that I’m a boy, that’s all. And it’s a national festival. Dolls are displayed publicly. The only reason she wouldn’t know is if she’s been deliberately kept from society her whole life, or if she’s new to Japan, but she seems ethnically Japanese and can speak the language.”

“Maybe she just forgot,” Hinata suggested.

“Ah, yes, you managed to forget your talent, after all.”

Komaeda’s face looked incredibly punchable.

As if noticing the way Hinata was looking at him, Komaeda continued his description of _Kyuumeihen’_ s first chapter.

“But as tends to be the case, the history of the ritual was darker and involved human sacrifice, and Mika is being invited to become a sacrificial doll.”

“Wait, is that real? About human sacrifice?”

“Absolutely not,” he laughed. “At least, it’s pure speculation by the game. Hitobashira does make it seem at least plausible, though, if people were sacrificed for the sake of a building, a sacrifice for another person wouldn’t be that unlikely, and there are plenty of cultures that would perform human sacrifice for the good of society. The Aztecs are an obvious example, but there’s evidence of it all over the world at various points in history, and in a way, isn’t it still practiced? The death penalty is a human sacrifice for the good of society, and although we probably don’t think of it as appeasing gods, it’s to appease someone.”

“No! They aren’t the same thing! Because… because the death penalty is for serial killers, not innocent virgins.” He blushed at the word but glared at Komaeda in what he hoped was a convincingly intimidating manner.

Komaeda bit his lip and inhaled through his nose, but Hinata was not to be deterred, so he smirked and gave a rather self-satisfied answer.

“Actually, usually human sacrifice was reserved for criminals, because why waste useful members of society? The main difference is the performance aspect. By making public entertainment of it, and reassuring people that they’ve won the favour of the gods, can’t that be seen as better for society than just hanging murderers in private?”

“What?! No! That… that would create a society that celebrates killing. Someone’s death should be a last resort, not an event.”

“Maybe.”

“What Monokuma did to Hanumura… Shit.” He didn’t want to think about it. “I don’t want to die, and I especially don’t want to die like that. I don’t want anyone to die like that. Treating it like entertainment!” It made him furious. The hatred he felt for Monokuma for doing that to one of his classmates was probably the only thing keeping him from nausea at the memory.

“So, Sakura wants Mika to stay with her, and Mika agrees, she likes Sakura and wants to be her friend.” Komaeda carries on, oblivious to Hinata’s suffering, or just unequipped to deal with it. Or perhaps he was trying to upset him, who fucking knew with this guy?

“So I should be wary of someone who appears to be my friend. Wish I’d known that earlier.”

“Oh?”

“I was talking about you! Why I’m even here, I don’t know.”

He still didn’t leave.

“I’d like to be your friend, Hinata-kun, but I can accept being hated.”

“Just… get on with it.”

“Sakura says she’s drawn to how alive Mika is, it’s such a contrast to those who were destined to die. This causes her to say ‘The wind rises, we must try to live’ for the first time. Mika’s friends are later able to call out to her, to convince her that Sakura is trying to kill her, to try and bring her home, and if they’re successful, Sakura says it again, it becomes her reason to let Mika go. She’s quoting it from _The Wind Rises_ , the book I mentioned before.  
It’s about a young man living in a sanatorium with his fiancée who has TB. But the thing is, you can’t just choose to live. Both the author and his wife died of tuberculosis. It’s really beautifully written prose, but it’s ultimately just about two people wasting their time, secluded from the world, doing nothing. The thing is, the vaccine already existed, it was thirty years old." he sighed, looking genuinely disappointed,  
"Talent is worthless if it isn’t used. A pointless, avoidable death. But at least it inspired Hori-san to write his novella. The line in question is actually ‘le vent se lève, il faut tenter de vivre’. Do you speak French, Hinata-kun?"

“No.”

“Ah, you’re not the Super High School Level Linguist, then. It’s a shame, it’s best experienced in the original language.”

“Were you always this pretentious?”

“Ah aha, you’re right, I sounded really up my own arse, haha.”

Hinata winced at the unexpected vulgarity, although the idea of hearing the normally politely spoken boy saying more obscenities definitely had its appeal.

“I can read German, as well, and I’ve made a pathetic attempt to learn some other languages. But Sonia-san is a far greater linguist than me, if you’re ever in need.”

“German? Are you planning to become a doctor?”

“Such a hopeful career! Someone like me could never take on such a role. I do find learning medical terms to be a comfort, but I’m much to useless to be a help to anyone.”

Learning medical terms for fun? That… was pretty creepy. Or maybe Tsumiki had just warped his impression of anything related to medicine. Either way, definitely not a topic he wanted to delve into.

“You were saying.”

“It’s taken from a poem, _Le Cimetière marin_ \- The Graveyard by the Sea- which is where it’s set. In watching the ocean, and his surroundings in general, the narrator first talks about how everything dies, but the poem then moves to celebrate life. It recognises the inevitability of death, but also the importance of living in the present and enjoying the life you have. It’s not against dying, and the use of the plural pronoun is important.  
We as a collective, we as society, have to strive for life. Which doesn’t go against sacrificing yourself for the benefit of the group as a whole. Life is about flourishing, about hope, it’s not just the opposite of death. So, Mika living doesn’t necessarily follow from the line, which is probably why Sakura is able to use it both ways..  
I think in _The Wind Rises_ , that’s probably the point. The narrator writes his novel and enjoys being with the one he loves while he still can. I…can understand wanting someone to love and be loved by in the face of death.”

“What?”

“Oh, well, you know, with the killing game going on. Someone as useless as me is bound to get killed, it’s not like I’d stand a chance against you Super High School Level students, and I’m happy to die for the sake of any of you. If I can at least control my death, make it mean something. For something worthwhile to come from my pitiful life.”

“You can’t just throw your life away. What kind of hope can come from being murdered?!”

“Surely you can see that strong hope defeats weak hope, and don’t you want hope to prevail?”

“I’m nothing like you! You’re the only one here who even cares about hope! I- we just want everyone to survive, to get out of this nightmare. Killing people will only make things worse.” Hinata was so easily riled up, talking to Komaeda was tiring. There were only so many times he could get into the same argument.

“Just… finish what you were saying,” he said, resignedly. He’d almost be interested if it weren’t for all the hope bullshit.

“Mika has a choice. But what choice she makes, actually relies on what you choose to say to her. Her friends decide her fate, without intervention it seems her decision was to stay with Sakura, not knowing that she was choosing death. Officially that’s the bad end, but who is to say it really is? Anyway, if you try to throw yourself off the cliffs, it’ll be up to everyone else to stop you. You’ll just have to trust in our class.”

“The last time you said that, you were trying to lure us to our deaths.”

“I don’t think that’s fair. I don’t think any of you SHSL students could be lured, especially not by me!”

Hinata gave him a look.

“Mmm, I was testing you. Trust and complacency aren’t the same thing. I had to see the extent of your hope! Doubting everyone isn’t a good strategy, after all, it’s the person who locks themselves in their room that usually dies first!”

“Pretty sure you’re the one who’s locked up.”

“And I’d be happy to die! But you being hypnotised into suicide would be deeply despairing, so I hope the dialogue tree is on your side!”

“I thought Nanami was supposed to be the ultimate gamer,” he muttered. Between Komaeda, Nanami, and the motive game, he’d had enough of video games for a while. Not that he had much of an opportunity to play any stuck here.

“Ah, yes, as much as I’ve loved your generous decision to talk to me about it, Hinata-kun, the SHSL gamer will probably be able to give you better advice.”

“You think I don’t know that? I’m only talking to you because I wasn’t supposed to play the game in the first place!”

It wasn’t like he had much of a choice. Keeping it to himself was a bad idea, but so was announcing his betrayal to the rest of his classmates. Not that talking it through had made him feel much better about the situation. But he was still here, listening to Komaeda, how long had it been? He went to check the time on the air conditioning. Already?

“Ugh, I said I’d meet up with Soda”

“Soda-kun? Has he perhaps found a way to utilise his talent for the sake of hope?”

“I… seriously doubt that. Still, it probably can’t be much worse than sitting inside listening to you.”

“Have fun, Hinata-kun! Be sure to put on sun cream if you’re planning to spend time outdoors! I’m sure Soda-kun would be happy to help.”

“W-what?” He spluttered, face turning red. Komaeda had said it with the most innocent of expressions, but it wouldn’t be the first time he’d suggested Soda was interested in Hinata.

Flustered, he left the room.

\-------------------------------------

Bonus:

Hinata: You said you wanted to be a ladder for hope

Komaeda: Ah, sorry, Hinata-kun, but I actually said a stepladder

Hinata: So? What’s the difference? They do the same thing, right?

Komaeda: I’m sure a SHSL student such as yourself is well aware that usually a ladder is capable of reaching much greater heights than a mere stepladder, and I wouldn’t be so presumptuous as to think of myself that way.

Hinata: Not necessarily, you can have tall stepladders and short ladders, there’s nothing in the definition about the height! So you should, um, stop making narrow-minded… cultural assumptions

Komaeda: Ah, of course, whatever you say, Hinata-kun

**Author's Note:**

> If you're interested in Twilight Syndrome, aRdW did English translated playthroughs of Tansakuhen, Kyuumeihen, and Saikai on YouTube, go support him
> 
> Hitobashira is sacrificing people to the gods to protect a building, and it may not be real
> 
> The English translation I read of The Wind Rises actually calls it The Wind has Risen and included a bad translation of the line from the poem, I originally went into that before I found out it was only an issue with the English, so I saved you from a whole French lesson
> 
> If you got my references, lmk  
> But feel free to comment for any reason! Even if you're reading this years later. Completely ignore what I wrote and ask my opinion on a random DR character, if you fancy (yes, I know, I should get a tumblr account, but I feel too old to learn how to use that cursed site).


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